Political Insider: Russell Pearce to make intentions known

Mar. 10, 2012 09:45 PMThe Republic | azcentral.com

To run or not to run... That is the question Russell Pearce promises to answer on March 19. Pearce, a recalled former state senator and illegal-immigration-enforcement darling, has left supporters and opponents hanging for months.

Surely recall organizer Randy Parraz is dying to know whether he can toss those Recall Pearce signs in the recycle can. And Sen. Steve Smith, R-Maricopa, has to be desperate for news of the return of his immigration-bill partner -- without Pearce, Smith's primary immigration bills were never even given hearings.

But if Pearce does decide to run, voters should prepare for a nasty fight. Pearce is in the new District 25, which covers most of Mesa and includes portions of the previous Districts 18 and 19. The district already has an incumbent -- Sen. Rich Crandall, a moderate Republican who fended off a "tea party" challenge in 2010.

Sen. Jerry Lewis, R-Mesa, who ousted Pearce in the recall, is in the new District 26, which covers the western edge of Mesa and part of Tempe.

Now you see him, now you don't ... It's long been suspected something fishy was going on at the office of the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission. Just ask any "tea party" member and you'll get an earful.

But here's something more spooky than a competitive congressional district: a ghost.

Staffers on two occasions reported seeing a ghostly figure with shoulder-length gray hair combed back off his or her forehead. The ghost was wearing a long gray coat.

One sighting located the ghost outside commission offices on West Washington Street. Another time, a staffer saw the apparition walk past one of the tall doorways inside the 1893 Queen Anne house that is now the commission's home.

Kristina Gomez, the commission's executive assistant, said she occasionally would hear the sound of someone walking around in the upstairs rooms where the mapping consultants worked. But when she went upstairs, no one was there.

Pretty creepy. But with the commission starting to wrap up business, the Evans House ghost might have to find new office mates. We hear the Legislature is looking for some extra space ...

Boosting immunity ... What's with being a lawmaker named "Patterson" and legislative immunity?

Democratic Rep. Daniel Patterson is citing it as a reason he can't be expected to go through with court proceedings related to his domestic-violence charges.

His duties as a lawmaker keep him in Phoenix and what with the court being in Tucson, it would prevent him from doing the job taxpayers elected him to do. Or so the argument goes.

Two decades ago, another lawmaker named Patterson, this one Greg, a Phoenix Republican, also invoked his legislative immunity after he got pulled over on a traffic stop. Turns out he was driving with expired plates. And he didn't have his driver's license on him.

The then-freshman lawmaker said he couldn't be arrested or cited because the Legislature was still meeting, according to a Phoenix Gazette article on the incident.